One of the critical aspect of developing identity is Gender Identity
Although often used interchangeably, the terms "gender" and "sex" do not refer to the same thing. "Gender" refers a broad set of characteristic qualities that distinguish between masculinity and femininity and includes personal attributes, social roles, social customs, activities, and behaviours. Furthermore, the characteristic qualities associated with a particular gender vary over time, and across cultures. For instance, at one time it was not considered very feminine to play sports; however, in contemporary Western culture both men and women play sports with equal zeal. Unlike "gender,", the term "sex" is a constant across time and culture and refers to a biologic, chromosomal determination of being either male (XY) or female (XX). In simplest terms, sex is biological while gender is sociological.
During early to mid-adolescence, youths' understanding of gender is quite rigid and stereotyped. As a result, younger adolescents will typically participate in more gender-stereotyped behaviours than do older adolescents. This means that girls will gravitate toward more "girly" activities and present an ultra-feminine appearance, while guys will lean toward more "guy" activities and present an über-masculine appearance. There are a number of reasons for these gender-stereotyped behaviours.
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